Owner of jumbo ‘Gulabi’ arrested

Three days after Gulabi, 59-year-old captive elephant from Srirangam,
died on the way back from Pollachi, its owner N Baskar has been arrested
for gross negligence in maintaining the elephant leading to its death.

Baskar, who owns three more elephants, has been charged with violating
provisions of Tamil Nadu captive elephants (management and
maintenance) rules, 2011. He was also booked under various penalty
clauses under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

He was produced in the district court on Wednesday, where he was
denied bail and remanded in judicial custody at the Trichy central prison
for 15 days. Gulabi was not keeping well for the last few weeks, while

Baskar transported it all the way to Pollachi for Gaja pooja as part of a marriage function for monetary gain.

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Overworked Elephant Slowly Dies By Roadside

This footage shows an ailing elephant dying by the roadside after it was forced to stand through a full wedding despite having fainted and was then packed into a stuffy lorry for a six-hour journey to another function.

The incident took place when the female captive elephant fell ill while being transported to the city of Tiruchirappalli in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the back of a lorry.

The owner, N. Baskar, had accepted two bookings for Gulabi the elephant for that day, and had just finished a wedding in Pollachi when they were returning to Tiruchirappalli for another function.

However, the 59-year-old elephant collapsed and slowly died on the roadside.

Meanwhile, Baskar has been accused of ignoring the animal’s ailing condition and showing disregard for its age and capabilities.

A senior forest department official also said that Baskar ignored their warnings not to take the elephant on such a long trip.

The spokesperson added that the elephant had previously fainted on its way to the wedding in Pollachi, saying: “For an elephant of this age, rest is mandatory, but it was made to travel in [a] truck to Pollachi for about six hours.

“Unable to bear the heat, Gulabi fainted in the truck despite being administered intravenous fluids.

“After facing all this, the elephant was made to stand until the wedding concluded.”

According to local media, Baskar obtained the required paperwork from the authorities in Chennai, but failed to inform forest officials in Pollachi or Tiruchirappalli before transporting the elephant.

Meanwhile, local activists have called for the elephant owner to be punished for cruelly overworking the ageing animal.

It is unclear whether the police are investigating the claims.

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Ranbir Kapoor feels Amitabh Bachchan is being 'extra sweet' to him as the megastar treats him like a family

Ranbir Kapoor will be sharing screen space with megastar Amitabh Bachchan in Ayan Mukerji's 'Brahmastra'. And Big B has been all praises for Ranbir for his acting skills and work, he has always showered Jr RK with a lot of compliments.

Read Also:

This is what Amitabh Bachchan has to say about his ‘Brahmastra’ co-star, Ranbir Kapoor

Recently, during a media interaction at an event, Ranbir was asked about Sr Bachchan's words for him. The actor replied that Ranbir said that he feels is being extra sweet to him as the megastar treats him like a family. Ranbir also added that he cannot get any bigger compliment than Amitabh Bachchan's words.

Meanwhile, 'Brahmastra' stars Alia Bhatt as the female lead and is part of a trilogy. Apart from Amitabh, Ranbir and Alia, the film's cast include Akkineni Nagarjuna, Mouni Roy and Dimple Kapadia. Backed by Karan Johar, the film is all set to hit the screens on December 20, 2019.

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A jumbo-special Holi! Vidyut Jammwal bonds and makes a splash with elephants in Jaipur

'Junglee' star Vidyut Jammwal celebrated Holi by bonding with elephants and being endlessly sprayed with pond water by them. He tells us why, despite having the best time of his life during the film’s shoot, he was always respectful.

For elephants, a rollick in the water is just a regular day. But for most of us who don’t live in #waterbaby-style Instagrammable locations, Holi presents the perfect opportunity. So when Vidyut Jammwal found out about Jaipur’s Haathi Gaon, a safe stomping ground for pachyderms, he knew that’s where he was celebrating Holi this year. The star of the upcoming film 'Junglee' spent his day bonding with the elephants, lovingly applying a touch of gulal to their foreheads, wading into ponds on elephant-back and being sprayed endlessly by his bearer with pond water. But Vidyut didn’t mind; it was a warm day and the elephants wanted to keep their backs cool, he just happened to be in the way.

That’s exactly what he learnt during the shoot of 'Junglee' – the elephants decide, not the humans. “Whenever I was with the elephants, I had to be feeling a hundred percent. Like earlier, when I tried to get on top of one of these elephants, I knew she didn’t want me up. So I was aware and I knew she’d topple me down, which she did. I just landed on my feet because I was careful. On 'Junglee’s set too, every time I was with the elephants I was having a lot of fun. But if I didn’t feel it from them, I didn’t go there. They’re as moody as human beings,” Vidyut tells us.

'GATHER AROUND, CHILDREN’: Lakshmi, Gomti, Shakuntala, Muskan and Tara graciously spent their day with Vidyut and schoolkids at Jaipur’s Haathi Gaon. The kids, of course, couldn’t take their eyes off the majestic elephants

When he was a kid, Vidyut says his mom told him, “Agar tum haathi ke neeche se nikal jaao toh tumhari sau saal umar ho jati hai.” Then with a grin, he adds, “So I shot a video in Chiang Mai, where I crossed from under the elephant five times. Greedy me! Mom was happy with the first one only. She didn’t care, ‘kahin dab mat jaana’. She was just, ‘very good!’.” That and 'Junglee’s promos might give you the impression that Vidyut was perfectly at ease around his mammoth co-stars, but what he says next surprises you – “I’m always scared around them. Always.” The actor explains why that fear is essential. “Hence they get the respect they ought to,” he says, “Fear keeps you on the edge. When I was standing on the elephant, it’s petrifying, by the way. It does scare you but being scared makes you more careful. Respect the being. You don’t fool around with them. You have to respect boundaries with them.”

It was that respect that helped Vidyut not be lulled by the myth of the ‘gentle giants’ and always be aware of their power. “You just keep hearing it, ‘They’re very gentle’. Gentle? Have you seen them angry? You’ll be surprised,” says Vidyut. That’s the dilemma conservation has faced often – people are driven by their fear to harm animals, or by misguided love or arrogance to get too close to them, which gets them, and often, the animal, killed. “Honestly, we should start with respect rather than love,” says Vidyut, “My relationship with my mother is more of respect, and then love comes second. There’s no first and second, but respect is the first thing – that gets the love. We need to respect these creatures, not only for their size, but for what we don’t know about them. We know nothing about them.”

Vidyut explains that the ‘gentle’ branding fails to recognise something far deeper in the elephant. “We just say, oh they’re gentle. But it’s actually that they’re so aware. They will never bump into a human being. You put five people in a small space, we’ll be pushing each other. But on set, you have 20-30 elephants, they don’t bump into each other, it’s amazing. So much awareness of this huge size of theirs. Their awareness is superior, far more superior.”

Vidyut has also nailed some killer Kalaripayattu moves in the movie, and he says the martial art helped him understand that awareness better. “What can’t be noticed by the common eye is that when they stand, their weight is not on their legs, it’s in their centre. In the Vedic science of Kalaripayattu, they say that if you start imbibing what you can from any creature – it could be a monkey, squirrel, giraffe, elephant – you can experience many lives in just one. We move like every animal. So what we imbibe from elephants is not their size, it’s how they keep themselves glued to the ground. And it’s not because of their weight, it’s because they keep themselves centred, grounded,” he says. To give a demo, he digs his feet into the ground in a warrior pose and asks two guys to try to tip him over. As intended, they fail. “What Kalaripayattu does, it explains to you everything you need to imbibe from them,” says Vidyut.

What Vidyut is hoping 'Junglee' achieves is a greater awareness about elephants and what they need to survive today. The film deals with poaching and the immediate danger they face of extinction. “Yes, in general, I don’t think they’re meant to interact with humans. But the ones we worked with in Thailand were domesticated. Their survival depends on learning how to deal with us. And that for me is a tragedy. That to protect them, we first have to tame them out of their natural habitat. But 'Junglee' is trying to show them at their most natural. We’re not making a song and dance about it, not preaching. We’ve not ‘taught’ anything, but people, especially children, will learn so much. I’ve realised that education, if it’s fun, will teach you. 'Junglee' expresses this fun.”

However, Vidyut’s idea of ‘fun’ during our shoot was still about educating, we realise, when he says, “One of the things that were running in my head when I was on top of the elephant was that we need to do this more in our country. We had to shoot the film in Thailand, but spending my day here, playing Holi with them, I felt so good that I’m doing this in my country. I felt so good that people will know about this place where they can come and really enjoy the elephants. That was my idea of fun (laughs).”

Our shoot started with five pachyderms, but once in the water, three of them just decided to roll onto their side and kick around in the pond. Like Vidyut told us, the elephants decide the day, not us!

And as you plan to have your fun today, Vidyut wants to leave you with this one thought: “With the elephants, I was always having a lot of fun. But it always came with being respectful of what they wanted, how they felt about me being around. I couldn’t cross any lines with them. That’s exactly how you ought to play your Holi too.”

Put that on your pichkaari!

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India’s First Elephant Hospital Is Treating Abused Elephants And Making A Difference Every Day

India is quite popular because of its oneness with nature and love for wildlife. According to Hindu philosophy (which is the major religion in India), animals are to be treated with kindness and many of them are represented in the form of deities too. So, when the country opened the first-ever elephant hospital back in 2018, it sent surges of joy throughout the world. And the good news is that a few months post its opening, this facility has successfully treated about 26 elephants.

The hospital is situated in Uttar Pradesh and was established by an animal welfare group called Wildlife SOS. It is a non-profit organization which is involved in the task of saving wild animals in India. It has been active since the year 1995. This group not only helps pachyderms but they have also helped turtles, bears, leopards, and different kinds of endangered species as well.

The problem with elephants in India comes due to their popularity among tourists. Due to the Western representation of India as a kind of magical and exotic land, elephants have gained a special value. Due to this stereotyping, many people still believe that Indians ride elephants and so, they also want to share the experience when they come to India. This results in the abuse of the mammal who is used in riding camps, temples, circuses, and for a variety of reasons by the tourism industry. Elephant abuse is rampant in India and neglecting them results in the rising complications of diseases among the elephant population. So, the hospital has come as a ray of light for them.

When a rescued elephant is brought into the medical center, they undergo a complete evaluation by a veterinarian. As most of these elephants are suffering from malnutrition and neglect, they have developed debilitating physical issues. The medical center is thus focused on treating old and injured elephants. It has all the modern equipment needed for a proper analysis of their physical conditions. They have ultrasound, digital radiology, pathology lab, laser therapy, hydrotherapy pool, and a special medical hoist to properly lift these large animals and put them in the treatment area. When a general check-up is required, they have jumbo-sized digital weight scales, and other necessary laboratory capabilities.

The Wildlife SOS Elephant Hospital houses a portable X-Ray machine and they also have special foot-care tools. As there are many diseased elephants that need overnight observation, the medical center is fitted with infrared cameras so that veterinarians can monitor their patient the entire night.

Holly is one such patient of the hospital. She was a street-riding elephant and she was kept poorly by her owner. She is blind. When she first arrived in the hospital, her body was almost completely covered with untreated abscesses. Malnutrition has resulted in arthritis in her hind legs. She needed medical support and that too fast, but her owner did not think it was required.

In the hospital, Holly is being treated well. A team of veterinarians is trying to treat her painful arthritis by using therapeutic ultrasonography and cold laser therapy. They are also treating the abscesses daily and trying to keep her healthy by giving her the right amount of nutritious food.

After their treatment, these large mammals are taken to Wildlife SOS’s two elephant sanctuaries present in India: The Elephant Rescue Centre in Yamunanagar and The Elephant Conservation and Care Centre in Mathura. Thus, these elephants can spend the rest of their lives in peace and under proper protection.

Abused animals need our help and Wildlife SOS is doing their best to prevent it. We need to do our part as well and call out any kind of animal abuse that takes place. Animals are our friends – our neighbors. We should treat them with the same love and respect.

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Elephant attacks man as he gets close to take picture in southern India

Description

A man was knocked down by an elephant after getting too close to the animal in order to take a picture in southern India.

The incident took place on March 19 in Alappuzha district in the south Indian state of Kerala.

Footage captured on March 19 shows a man getting close to an elephant while trying to take a picture of the tusker at the Aravukadu Sreedevi temple.

The pachyderm then attacks the man, knocking him cold with its trunk.

The misery did not end there, the elephant later threw him away a few feet as other people watched in horror.

However, following the attack, the pachyderm did not do any harm.

The victim was identified as Reenesh, 43, a truck driver by profession. Fortunately, he survived the attack and has been in the hospital since. His condition is said to be critical.

It is yet not known what enraged the animal.

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Tusker died due to electrocution in Bandipur National Park

Chamarajanagara, Mar 19(UNI) A 20 year-old Tusker found dead when it came in contact with a
live cablewire drawn to illegally electrify fence surrounding a Farmland in Kundkere Range of

Bandipur forest range.

Officials said on Tuesday that they found the elephant dead and booked a case against the
landlord who is absconding.

Postmortem was conducted and carcass of the elephant was buried.

The first such incident occurred in Bandipur Tiger Reserve and the department has also filed a
complaint against Chamundeshwari Electrical Supply Corporation for failure to monitor and
crack down on power tapping illegally.

UNI BSP MSP HVB1428

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After Dad and Daughter arrested from Kerala with ivory, 6790 kgs of red sandalwood seized in Kolkata

Kolkata, Mar 14 (UNI) After a dad and daughter from Kerala arrested
with banned ivory sculptures and elephant tusk worth Rs 34 lakh, the
DRI seized 6790 kgs of red sandalwood valued about over Rs 3.5 crore from
this metropolis, which turned to one of transit routes of contraband goods.

Altogether five people, three of them in the ivory case, have been
arrested following investigations by the Directorate of Revenue
Services (DRI), a central agency.

Father Sudheesh Chandra Babu,(67) and his daughter Amitha SC Babu
(37) have been arrested early this week when their chartered vehicle
was frisked at Kona Expressway on their temporary home in south Kolkata.

The father brought the ivory and elephant task from Kottayam.

The duo used to bring elephant tusks from Kerala and sculpted to
different kind of small sized statutes, mainly Hindu god and goddess.

A linkman, Gautam Bhaskar, a resident of Jiagunj of Murshidabad
district, also arrested in this connection. The linkman used to
exports those sculptors to foreign counties though the corridor of
Siliguri in north Bengal to Bangladesh, and Nepal.

Two pieces of elephant tusk weighing around 3 kgs were found when the
DRI arrested them. Later a raid at their temporary residence at Kasba
seized several carved ivory statuettes. The combined worth of the
hauls would be several crores of rupees.

The DRI got inputs from the Wild Life Crime Bureau in Kerala and since
then the DRI laid a trap and finally arrested the dag and daughter
red handed.

Sudheesh’s wife, wanted in a 2015 elephant poaching case in Kerala,
and their son are absconding, the official said.

The DRI also seized a covered truck from port area and recovered red
sandal woods weighing about 6790 kgs, worth over Rs 3.5 crores.

Two people have been arrested in this connection.

UNI PC RN

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A tusker and cow elephant found shot in Silent Valley

The discovery of two wild elephant carcasses in the buffer zone of the Silent Valley National Park in February has put wildlife wardens on their toes.

The killings have also spotlighted the threat posed by poachers who hunt wild elephants to harvest tusks and the powerful inter-State mafia that profits from the sale of ivory artefacts to wealthy collectors.

Forest Range Officer, Silent Valley, Najmal Ameen, said the carcasses were found on February 27, an estimated 400 m from each other. One was that of a tusker and the other a cow elephant. He said the animals had died of gunshot wounds and the poachers had hewn off their tusks. Wildlife enforcers have arrested two persons and recovered a country made musket from the suspects. However, they were yet to retrieve the tusks. Wildlife wardens also found the carcass of a bull elephant in the periphery of the Mannarkkad Forest Division. Sunil Kumar, Divisional Forest Officer, said the kill appeared to be the handiwork of persons farming land on the fringes of the forest.

They could have shot or poisoned the elephant. Forensic veterinarians could not identify the cause of death because the body had decomposed badly. The tusks were seen pulled out and not chopped off as poachers tend to do, he said.

Chief Wildlife Warden, Surendra Kumar, told The Hindu that the evidence collected so far did not indicate an organised effort to poach elephants for their ivory as witnessed in Malayattoor, Vazhachal and Munnar forest divisions in 2014-15. (The killings of an estimated 18 bull elephants had resulted in an asymmetrical sex ratio in specific herds). Mr. Kumar said wildlife enforcers were not taking any chances. They have stepped up surveillance and wardens were increasingly relying on technology, including hidden night vision cameras and aerial drones, to tack poachers.

Wildlife investigators said they had identified at least 20 forest localities in Kerala, which they said were vulnerable to elephant poaching. They said they had responded to the threat by identifying, trapping and naming prominent herds and counting the wild elephants in their home range with particular emphasis on photographing and documenting the bulls.

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After decades, Junglee brings back magic of jumbos on big screen

Hindi cinema has not seen real elephants since the ’60s and ’70s. As Junglee fills that jumbo-sized gap, those that remember the thrill of watching elephants in theatres relive the era.

"When the elephant cried, I cried too”, “I wanted an elephant friend whom I could call by name”, “petting an elephant was my only dream” – these were just some responses we got from the generation that still remembers the magic of watching elephants ‘act’ on the big screen, when a handful of elephant movies were made in the ’60s and ’70s. Since then, it’s only been CGI elephants or animated characters, leaving later generations with only the imagination of what it would have been like watching real elephants in action in theatres. In fact, 'Haathi Mere Saathi' (1971) was such a huge hit that moviegoers stood in never-ending queues to get tickets. Those associated with these films of yore say that they gave the elephant characters their most human characteristics, and that the ’60s and ’70s were a defining period for elephants in Hindi cinema.

More than four-and-a-half decades later, that magic is set to be revived with 'Junglee', which stars Vidyut Jammwal and Bhola, the mighty elephant. With Bhola and his jumbo friends ready to take over the screens on March 29, kids finally have a chance to watch the story of a real elephant.

Dharmendra had the ‘best experience’ shooting for 'Shola Aur Shabnam' (1961). Seen here with Tarla Mehta

We used to wait for hours to get one shot with elephants: Dharmendra

Dharmendra, who shot with elephants in films like 'Maa' (1976) and 'Shola Aur Shabnam' (1961), says that the shooting was challenging but “one of the best experiences” an actor can have. He tells us, “In my career, I’ve got quite a few opportunities to shoot with animals, including elephants and tigers. One of the prominent ones was Maa, which was all about a mother elephant’s love for her little one and how she fights a man (played by Dharmendra) trying to trap the baby elephant. It was a beautiful film that conveyed an important message through a touching story. The film was loved not just in India, but was a huge hit in Russia as well. I really enjoyed shooting it. We were shooting in Mudumalai in Karnataka and it was interesting, but very challenging too. Those elephants and other animals we were shooting with were trained, but you need a lot of patience while shooting with them. We used to wait for hours just to get one perfect shot. It was a lot of hard work for everyone but I enjoyed every bit of it. I also got a chance to shoot with elephants in my second film, 'Shola Aur Shabnam'. We shot that in Karnataka as well.”

We shot in a forest with trained and wild elephants: 'Kala Parvat' director

MS Sathyu, best known for directing 'Garm Hawa' (1974), also directed 'Kala Parvat' (1972), an India and Soviet Union co-production. The film was jointly directed by MS Sathyu and Alexander Zagurdi. Sathyu says, “We shot the film in a forest with 80-90 real elephants, with a Russian group. Shooting this film was very difficult because we had different types of elephants – trained ones, wild elephants, baby elephants. But we had the expertise of a Russian crew, who advised us on how to deal with animals, and forest officials helped too. It was indeed a mammoth task, but children loved the film, and even now it is screened for kids.”

He adds, “Of course, a film shot with real elephants will work even in today’s time; children will especially love it. We don’t make films with real elephants anymore. Now, everything is animated.”

Rajesh Khanna-starrer 'Haathi Mere Saathi' (1971) was a massive hit

‘Haathi Mere Saathi was a massive success because it was Rajesh Khanna’s first film to connect with kids’

Gautam Chintamani, who has written Rajesh Khanna’s biography, had come across a number of anecdotes about 'Haathi Mere Saathi' during his research. He tells us, “When I was talking to Salim Khan, (who wrote the screenplay with Javed Akhtar), he told me that one of the major reasons behind the massive success of 'Haathi Mere Saathi' was that it was Rajesh Khanna’s first film that connected with children. A number of scenes with elephants were included just to entertain kids. Other than its success at the box office, the film had a message for animal rights too.”

Chintamani adds, “For me, another film which is memorable is Safed Haathi. As a kid, I related to this film so well because it was full of adventure. I also found Maa very exciting as a kid because of the animals. Those films had such a huge impact that you’d want to have an animal friend whom you could name and pet.”

'Haathi Mere Saathi' is said to be the first Rajesh Khanna film to connect with kids

Children love elephant movies, but directors don’t make them: Children’s Film Society of India

The Children’s Film Society of India’s (CFSI) catalogue lists only a few films on elephants, like 'Kala Parvat', 'Haathi Ka Anda' (which doesn’t have any elephant). Nagraj Kulkarni, a CFSI official, says, “We have films like 'Kala Parvat', and a few other regional films on elephants, but most of those are old. Nowadays, there are very few films on elephants. One reason could be that shooting permission is difficult to get.”

Dharmendra agrees, “In the ‘70s, it was easier to shoot with elephants and other animals, but now, the law is very strict and therefore we don’t see many films on elephants. I’m glad to hear that after so many years, there is this film called 'Junglee' that’s coming soon. I hope this film wins hearts and that it’s a big hit, and more and more people go to watch it. There are very few films now where we see elephants as part of the main story.”

Vidyut Jammwal and Bhola show the unbreakable bond between man and elephant in the upcoming 'Junglee'

‘Want to see how the elephants in 'Junglee' act and react’

As 'Junglee' has been shot with real elephants, those who have seen elephant movies in theatres are quite excited about the movie. Jaisingh Rajput, Assistant Officer in Production at CFSI, says, “As a kid, I’ve seen all the movies with elephants – be it 'Haathi Mere Saathi' or 'Kala Parvat' – and I’m a huge fan of them. There are so few films with real elephants in them, and where the elephant is not just an animal, but a character. I’m looking forward to watch the film to understand how they have dealt with the animal, is he also acting in the film, how he responds in the scenes.”

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Jumbo scare grips Palakkad village again

PALAKKAD: Fear has gripped Arangottukulambu area in Malampuzha as
wild elephants returned to human habitats on Friday and raided crops.

Forest department officials burst crackers and threw fire balls to drive
away the three wild elephants that returned to the area. They have now
crossed the Korayar River and went to the Valiyeri forest area but they
may return any time, residents said.

Last year, a farmer was killed by wild elephants at his rubber farm at
Arangottukulambu and attacked two women. Last week, another farmer
had a narrow escape from attack by wild elephants at Akkakunnu near
Walayar.

Residents said that three wild tuskers were camping in Arangottukulambu area for the past couple of months.

The elephants raided paddy, plantain and coconut cultivation.

The elephants also destroyed water pipes used for irrigation purposes and pumping motors in farms.

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Lone young woman groped, attacked by 2 men on Baner Rd

Duo molested woman as she returned home alone on her bike; when she hit back in self-defence, they
banged her head on her bike and attempted to throttle her

While Baner flourishes as an up-andcoming hospitality location of the city, lined with numerous new and upscale establishments advertising good food, tipple and retail, it continues to hide a seamy underbelly of wanton crime — clearly belying the same lack of safety for women seen across India.

This appalling undercurrent of misogyny and violence became apparent in the wee hours of Sunday, when a 25- year-old female resident of Baner was returning home alone on her two-wheeler from a casual evening of fun and laughter with her friends. As the woman traversed the usually safe, short stretch between Elephant and Co.
and her residence, the journey took a nightmarish turn around 2.20 am, when two men on a bike glided past her Activa and hit her on the chest, in the lane next to the Bata Showroom, a well-known landmark along the route.

Horrified and shaken, the woman halted her bike on the roadside and immediately called a male friend who lives close by to pick her up. The young animal welfare activist told Mirror, “I was in a state of shock and reached out to a friend for help. Alarmingly, those same men who had assaulted me turned back and came and stood nearby.

They began pretending that they were there to help me, and started touching me. Little did they know that the first time itself when they had tried to grope me, I had noticed their attire and the make of their vehicle. I told them to get away from me and not touch me. But, they refused to listen. I told them repeatedly to move away, and out of desperation, I finally hit out and slapped one of them.”

But this simple act of self-defence turned things further awry. Seemingly incensed at her ‘temerity’, the men became furious; one of them grabbed her hair to bang her head onto the speedometer of her bike, causing her nose to bleed profusely. At the same time, the other man began choking her.

“My vision started fading when he began strangling me, but I saw one of them trying to lift a huge pot to hit me with. When he couldn’t, they started dragging me to the pot,” narrated the traumatised woman.

Meanwhile, her friend had remained on the call with her and heard the entire incident as it took place. The Baner resident told Mirror, “I first received a hysterical call from her as she was crying, a few hours after midnight. She told me that a man on a bike had hit her on her chest and she was in a state of shock. My home is at a walking distance from where she was, so I ran down, still on the call with her — suddenly, I heard her screaming for help.

I rushed to the spot and saw two men pulling her by her hair in the middle of the road. I ran over and pushed them away.”

The woman also did not lose her presence of mind and immediately grabbed the bike key of the assailants before calling the police. “The cops came to the spot around 15-20 minutes later. Both the attackers kept repeating that I had hit one of them first, justifying what they had done by hitting me back,” she said.

On hearing the exchange, police arrested the two accused, Avinash Dhankude and Shekhar Kalamkar, and filed an FIR against them by 5 am on Sunday. Now, they will be produced in court.

Assistant police inspector DS Shinde of Chaturshringi police station confirmed, “Early on Sunday morning, when the incident took place, we immediately filed the FIR and arrested the accused. It was a case of serious assault on a woman. The duo will be produced before court and an investigation into what happened is in process. We are gathering evidence and taking the matter very seriously.” Cops are also gathering closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera footage from buildings around the crime scene.

For now, Dhankude and Kalamkar have been booked under sections 354 (assault on a woman to outrage her modesty), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 504 (intentional insult provoking breach of the peace) of the Indian Penal Code.

Early on Sunday morning after the incident, we immediately filed the FIR and arrested the accused. It was a case of serious assault on a woman. The duo will be produced in court. We are gathering evidence and investigating the matter seriously

— API DS Shinde, Chaturshringi PS

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Taken to function, ailing jumbo dies

TRICHY: A 59-year-old female captive elephant from Srirangam died from
ill health while she was being transported to Trichy in a lorry, near

Namakkal, early on Sunday. She collapsed in the vehicle letting out a loud
cry, forcing the driver to pull over and check. Following an inspection, the
driver found the animal lying dead.

Called Gulabi, the elephant was owned by N Baskar, Srirangam. She was
taken to Gaja puja in Pollachi, Coimbatore district, as part of a wedding
ceremony. The death happened when she was transported back to
another function in Trichy for which the owner had received an advance.

It is alleged that the owner showed disregard for the condition of the
ailing elephant and deliberately ignored all related symptoms which
proved fatal. A senior forest department official said that Baskar had ignored their warning against taking the animal for long journey and paid the price for it.

Terming the incident cruel, animal activists called for stringent action against the owner for engaging it in work endangering the life. “For an elephant of this age, rest is mandatory. But it was made to travel in truck till Pollachi for about 6 hours, the official said.

“Unable to bear the heat, Gulabi fainted in the truck. Despite being administered intravenous fluids it did not stand on its feet.

After facing all this, the elephant was made to stand till the wedding concluded in the evening in Pollachi,” the forest department officials said.

Though Baskar had obtained necessary approval from forest department in Chennai, reports suggested he had not informed Trichy or Coimbatore forest officials before transporting the elephant.

When contacted, Baskar said Gulabi had been ill until a few weeks back, but doing well over the past few days. He took the animal only after obtaining medical certificate and clearance from forest department.

Alleging that elephants are being subjected to cruelty by their owners for money, animal activist P Paulraj said such incidents go mostly unnoticed due to irresponsible forest department.

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TN: Ailing elephant taken 200 km away for wedding function, dies on way back

Gulabi, an ailing 60-year-old elephant died while being transported on a truck from Pollachi to Srirangam, a distance of 200 kilometres. Animal activists have accused the owner of inhumane exploitation of the mammal as it was sent to take part in a wedding celebration to Pollachi even as she was unwell. Activists say veterinarians had advised complete rest for Gulabi as she was suffering from an illness. The animal fainted several times in Pollachi and with great difficulty she was put on a truck with the help of an excavator for her return journey. She died before reaching Srirangam, and her carcass has been taken into custody by forest officials for conducting postmortem examination.

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Elephant dies while being transported back to Srirangam from Pollachi

The elephant died when the truck reached Namakkal around 4am on Sunday. TRICHY: A more than 60 years old female elephant, owned by a man in Srirangam, died on Sunday morning while being brought back from Pollachi on a truck. The elephant, called Gulabi, was taken to Pollachi - situated more 200 km from Srirangam - on Friday for a wedding ceremony on Saturday.Animal activists said the owner of the elephant had sent the ailing animal to Pollachi for monitory gain, without caring about its health.

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Man trampled by wild elephant

Chikkamagaluru, Mar 17 (UNI) A 50-year-old agricultural labourer was attacked by a wild
elephant that trampled him death at Mellenhalli in the district on Saturday evening.

Forest officials said on Sunday that the victim had been identified as Premantha Raju, a
native of Mudigere taluk.

The incident occurred when he was encountered the elephant while he was working in a coffee estate.

His family was residing at the workers’ quarters on the estate.

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Wildlife Experts Demands Joint Initiative to save Jumbos in Barak Valley

BOOST TO BIODIVERSITY

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Wildlife experts in Assam have demanded the Centre to launch a joint initiative with Bangladesh to save elephants in the Barak Valley.

According to experts, the only way to save the elephants in the Patharia Reserve Forest in Karimganj district of Barak Valley is through joining hands with Bangladesh for biodiversity conservation.

On other hand, researchers at the Assam University, Silchar, have also observed that initiating any conservation action for the Patharia Reserve Forest area is very tough as this deserves joint initiatives of both the countries (India and Bangladesh). Their observation has been published in a study entitled ‘Importance of trans-boundary conservation of the Asiatic elephant in Patharia hills’. The study has been done by Parthankar Choudhury and Nazimur Rahman Talukdar of Assam University and Rofik Ahmed Barbhuiya of Udhayan, a local NGO.

The Patharia Hills Reserve Forest occupies an area of 76.47 square km and is situated on the western side of Karimganj district and the eastern side of Sylhet district of Bangladesh.

“If conservation action is not taken up right now, the reserve forest will be a dense human settlement area without any trace of wildlife in the near future,” the study says.

Parthankar Choudhury, a researcher at the Department of Ecology and Environmental Studies, Assam University, said there are only six elephants (all females) in the Patharia Reserve Forest and translocation of a male elephant is the need of the hour. Such initiative has to be done by the government on a priority basis for their sustenance in this patch on the Indo- Bangladesh border, he said.

The elephants at the Patharia Reserve Forest are now divided into two small herds, three in each group and it has been observed that one herd always follows the other. They stay on both sides of the forest (Indian as well as on the Bangladesh portion) and cross the border frequently. The elephants have broken the border fences and use the route as their migratory corridor.

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The passionate wildlife conservationist of Assam who followed his dreams

A dream which Binod ‘Dulu’ Borah had when he was all of seven started his connect with nature and wildlife. Born in Chapanalla, a village close to the Karbi foothills of Nagaon district in Assam, today ‘Dulu’ is a passionate wildlife conservationist. Dulu dreamt that an elephant calf was frolicking around, but abruptly fell into an open well. Strangely enough, the well was located in a plot which belonged to his neighbour, Naren Tanti.

Dulu woke up with a start and narrated the dream to his father and relatives. He was cocksure that the incident had taken place, but no one believed him. Lo and behold, a few hours later, Dulu’s dream had indeed turned real – an elephant calf had indeed fallen in a well which belonged to his neighbour, Tanti!

A report published in theThe Better India quoted Dulu as saying, “I had noticed wild birds, turtles and small mammals in the weekly market near my village, and they would eventually be sold as bush meat. So, I’d keep coming up with ways to purchase them and set them free. Sometimes, I would even take money from my elder brothers without asking,” he recalls.

Five years later, Dulu became associated with Green Guard Nature Organization (GGNO), a grassroots organisation in Nagaon established in 1994, that has emerged as an agency for wildlife conservation. In the last three decades, Dulu has managed to rescue over 2,500 animals including 3 elephant calves, 2 leopard cubs, 3 bear cubs, 6 slow lorises, 10 Chinese pangolins, more than 20 deer, several hares, monkeys, mongoose, geckos, flying squirrel, civets, over 600 snakes including 14 King cobras, hundreds of turtles and hundreds of birds.

The report further quoted him as saying, “Most of the rescued wildlife species are rehabilitated back to the wilderness, close to the place of rescue. If the animal is injured, we keep it in my backyard, which is the GGNO’s temporary rescue centre. Here, the animal is provided veterinary treatment and then, is either released or sent for further treatment as recommended. In case the rescued animal is a baby mammal, we send it to the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC),” he shares.

Over his years of rescue efforts, Dulu has managed to establish a network of informers from communities across the region, who alerts him whenever they come across any suspicious activity. This has often led to a conflict of interest. He laments that encroachment of forest areas has led to the shrinking of wildlife habitat and hindered the ability of wild animals to move around the terrain.

A green thumb, in the past six years, ‘Dulu’ has planted over 25,000 trees. On behalf of GGNO, he also goes around conducting awareness programmes and outreach sessions in not just villages but also local schools and colleges on the importance of wildlife conservation and the impact of community participation.

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‘Junglee’: Vidyut Jammwal reveals that Elephants were the stars on the sets of the film

Actor Vidyut Jammwal is all set to enthral the audience with his upcoming adventure family drama titled, ‘Junglee’. The film has been receiving overwhelming response ever since the trailer of the film has been unveiled. If the makers and the actors of the film are anyone to believe, the Elephants, who play a major part in the film, played their charm and made everyone including the acclaimed Hollywood director Chuck Russell run to their tails.

Sharing one such anecdote, Vidyut Jammwal said, "Elephants were our stars. To add depth, crew used to add foilage on the set but for elephants it was their usual lunch. We literally sat and witnessed Bhola and his gang relish our set while the crew again rebuilt the setup again."

Elaborating more, he added, “We were like secondary cast, always on stand-by. When the herd was done eating and relaxing, we would take positions and perform. The unpredictability made it so much fun. We were lucky to witness Elephants in their natural habitat, just being themselves. Final result was worth all the wait.”

“We were one with nature. Experiences like this don't come often," he concluded.

The makers also made sure that the environment that there was Zero Carbon footprint on sets. The actors and crew members were instructed to communicate softly on sets as Elephants are used to a silent atmosphere.

'Junglee' is produced by Vineet Jain and co-produced by Priti Shahani, the film also stars Pooja Sawant, Asha Bhat, Atul Kulkarni and Makarand Deshpande.

The film is all set to take you for an adventure ride on March 29.

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Bengaluru Buzz: HC puts brakes on elevated corridor | Bannerghatta Park’s Eco-Sensitive Zone trimmed down | E-autos in IISc

Karnataka High Court has asked the state government to halt work on the elevated corridor project until it decides on a case related to the Bengaluru Metropolitan Planning Committee (MPC). MPC, the statutory body responsible for city planning and approving major projects like the elevated corridor, has been almost dysfunctional. A few citizen activists from the Namma Bengaluru Foundation and Citizen’s Action Forum had filed the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) after government hurriedly called tenders for the elevated corridor project, without public consultations.

A bench headed by the Acting Chief Justice Narayana Swamy and Justice Dinesh Kumar told the state government “not to precipitate matters” and to put its activity on the corridor on hold. The next date of hearing is March 19th.

Meanwhile, civic groups led by r Citizens foBengaluru (CfB) have organised a protest rally on Saturday, to demand that the government cancel the tenders called for the first phase of the 102-km-long elevated corridor project. The rally will be held under the slogan ‘#ElevatedCorridorTenderRadduMadi’.

The Karnataka Road Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL) had floated tenders for the first phase of the project on March 4th. The first phase comprises the 22 km-long North-South corridor, from Baptist Hospital on Bellary Road to Silk Board Junction.

Source: The New Indian Express | The News Minute | The Hindu

Bannerghatta National Park’s Eco-Sensitive Zone trimmed down

Thousands of citizens had objected to the trimming down of Bannerghatta National Park’s Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ), which provides a regulated buffer zone around protected areas. Yet, the ESZ Expert Committee of the centre’s MoEF (Ministry of Environment and Forests) has recommended that the park’s ESZ remain at 168 sq kms, reduced by about 100 sq kms (37 percent) from the original proposal. The first draft notification issued in 2016 had marked 268 sq kms as ESZ.

The new ESZ will range from 100 metres (towards Bengaluru) to one kilometre (in Ramanagaram district), from the periphery of the protected area. About 150 to 200 elephants have been spotted in the park, according to estimates by the ESZ Committee.

Source: The Hindu

HC to media: ‘Don’t cross Lakshman rekha’

The Karnataka High Court cautioned the media not to cross the “Lakshman rekha”, or encroach into others’ privacy. Justice B Veerappa said that the right of the media to publish facts or opinions should only be to foster public interest, without invading into an individual’s personal life. The media should toe the line, especially since laws relating to matrimonial disputes and divorce, and offences against children and women, have imposed “reasonable restrictions”, he said.

Justice Veerappa made these observations while allowing a petition filed by a software engineer, a woman who lives in Cardiff. She had sought that a Kannada TV channel be restricted from telecasting information about her marital dispute, which was pending before a family court.

Source: The Hindu | The Times of India

E-rickshaws in IISc campus

Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is launching a campus service of 10 electric autos on March 16th, to help transport students, staff, faculty and visitors within the 400-acre campus.

Called Pick-E-Rick, the autos will ply on five routes with distance ranging from 1.94 kms to 3.3 kms. They will operate between 8 am and 7.30 pm, Monday to Saturday. A flat fare of Rs 5 will be charged from each person for a one-way trip. The fare can be paid only through digital mode via an app or e-wallet. Transvahan Technologies India Pvt Ltd will be operating the e-rickshaws on an ‘Own, Operate, Maintain’ basis.

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